The Bhopal disaster, also referred to as the Bhopal gas tragedy, is considered the world's worst industrial disaster. The tragedy occurred on the night of December 2-3, 1984, at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in the city.

In the deadly incident, over five lakh people were exposed to methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas and other chemicals.

The toxic substance made its way into and around the shanty towns located near the plant. The initial investigation was conducted entirely by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Central Bureau of Investigation.

As per reports, the official immediate death toll was 2,259 while the government of Madhya Pradesh confirmed a total of 3,787 deaths related to the gas release.

A government affidavit in 2006 stated that the leak caused 558,125 injuries, including 38,478 temporary partial injuries and approximately 3,900 severely and permanently disabling injuries whereas others estimate that 8,000 died within two weeks, and another 8,000 or more have since died from gas related diseases. Union Carbide Corporation (UCC) contends water entered the tank through an act of sabotage.

Immediately after the deadly incident, the plant was closed to outsiders (including UCC) by the Indian government, which subsequently failed to make data public.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)